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| This is me standing on the wall of Ajlun Castle, in the northern part of Jordan. |
This past summer I had the opportunity to study abroad in the country of Jordan... a country filled with incredibly hospitable people and many awesome ancient places to explore. While we spent the majority of our time in the nation's capital, Amman, the program enabled us to visit the Dead Sea, Petra, as well as ancient Roman cities and sites of Biblical significance.
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Princess Sumaya University College for Technology
http://www.rss.gov.jo/psuct1.html
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| PSUCT's main building, where all of our classes were held. |
Our program was hosted by Princess Sumaya University College for Technology, one of the premier educational institutions in Jordan. The college specializes in Computer Science and Electronics Engineering and is owned by Jordan's Royal Scientific Society, the leading research center in the country.
The curricula for the IPENG study abroad program included Arabic language study, Islamic studies, and Jordanian History and Culture. We studied Arabic each morning and in the
afternoons had our choice to study either the religion of Islam or Jordanian History and
Culture. All of the classes were taught by English speaking professors who were well versed
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| The flats where we lived while we were in Jordan. |
in their areas of study. The part of the program that was most interesting to me was the History and Culture class, which largely focused on Jordan's role in the past and present
day conflict in the Middle East involving Palestine and Israel. It was extremely valuable to me to gain a Jordanian perspective of the long-standing conflict between these two groups of people. Most importantly, the program inspired me to continue to expand my general knowledge about the politics of the Middle East.
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| Taxi Driver Suzi and her passenger Brooke, acting out a skit in Arabic during class. |
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| Yasser Harikat, Dan, during Kevin and Dan's skit acting out a scene at a grocery store. |
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| Mike having a little stomach trouble, going to visit the doctor in his skit with Moose. |
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| Our last day of Arabic class. |
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Jordanian Culture & Lifestyle
The people of Jordan are incredibly hospitable, beyond anything I've ever experienced in my life. The students and staff at the University did all that they could to make us feel welcome and comfortable while in Jordan. Their concern and care for us while participating
in the program was exceptional and I felt privileged to participate in the program. We had
the chance to experience the every-day life of many of our Jordanian friends by hanging out with them at their homes and going out at night with them. They were gracious in making sure we felt involved with them and their activities while we were there.
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| Our IPENG group, our professors and administrators at PSUCT. |
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| The Jordanians we met were *incredibly* friendly towards us. This is our group with one of the families that lived in the same buildings as us. |
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Excursions
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| The Sic: a very narrow passageway that leads to the Treasury at Petra. |
While in Jordan we were able to go on many excursions outside of Amman. The most significant and interesting sites to me were Petra and Mt. Nebo. Petra was an awesome experience because the place is just so incredibly beautiful. Literally, Petra mean's
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| The Treasury at Petra, carved out of the sandstone cliffs. |
"rock". In actual, it is an explosion of the senses. Also known as the "Rose Red City", it is an entire city built out of the sandstone cliffs and mountains of southern Jordan. The entire city is massive and it would take at least a week to explore it thoroughly.
Mt. Nebo is a significant site to many Christians. It is the place where Moses died after wondering with the nation of Israel in the desert of Jordan for forty years. The Old Testament tells the story in Deuteronomy 34
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| Brooke riding a horse up to Petra. |
about how Moses climbed to the top of Mt. Nebo to see the Promised Land, yet couldn't enter because of his sin. There Moses died and the leadership of the Israelite people was handed over to Joshua, who led the Israelites into the Promised Land.
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| Mike at the top of a mountain overlooking the Monastery at Petra. |
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| Suzi standing atop Mt. Nebo. The Dead Sea can be seen behind her and Jerusalem in the far distance. |
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| The cross of Jesus Christ on Mt. Nebo. |
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| The church of Moses at Mt. Nebo. |
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| Nimr enjoying Arabic coffee with a friend. |
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| Yezin floating in the Dead Sea. |
We were also able to see and do many other things while in Jordan, like snorkel in the Red Sea, float in the Dead Sea, as well as tour many of the "castles" of Jordan.
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| Moose getting covered with that fantastic Dead Sea mud. Looks like he's having fun! |
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| Yezin and Courtney Sue admiring the Dead Sea. |
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| One of the ancient Roman amphitheaters in Jerash, Jordan. |
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Budget
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| Nimr practicing his Arabic reading skills in Aquaba. |
One of the greatest things about our program was the affordability. Never would I have imagined that we would be able to see and do the things that we were able to do on such a small budget. Below is a budget as advertised by IPENG for the following you, which I feel is very representative of what I spent on my trip.
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| Non-Refundable Processing Fee | $125 |
| Program Fee | $950 |
| UIUC Range IV Tuition & General Fee | $374 |
| CISI Health Insurance | $56 |
| Programmed Excursions | $200 |
| Meals (Breakfast & Dinner for 6 weeks) | $500 |
| Roundtrip Airfare | $1000 |
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| Sunset in Aquaba, Jordan. |
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For More Information
If you are interested in this program, or finding out more about other International programs offered to Engineers at the University of Illinois, visit IPENG's website:
http://www.engr.uiuc.edu/international
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| One of the coolest things we saw while in Jordan were the camels. |
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| Jordan has many castles that we were able to go and visit. This castle is the former home of Lawrence of Arabia. |
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| Some Jordanian children. |
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